carrot halwa | gajar halwa

Carrot halwaRecipe with step by step photos and video. This recipe shares the traditional way of making delicious gajar ka halwa without any shortcuts or tweaks. By the way, at home in Punjabi language we call carrot halwa as Gajrela.

During winters, we make gajar ka halwa often. it is a popular sweet made in north India during winters.

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This traditional carrot halwa recipe uses just full-fat milk, ghee and sugar to make the halwa. you don’t need khoya (evaporated milk solids) or condensed milk.

We generally use red Delhi carrots to make the halwa as they are tender and juicy. On occasions, i have also made carrot halwa with orange carrots. You can use any carrots – red, orange or black. But just make sure they are not fibrous and dense.

Tips for making best carrot halwa

To make gajar halwa, it is important to buy tender and juicy carrots so that they are easy to grate. Some arm work is needed to make this halwa as you have to first grate the carrots and then slow cook them in stovetop and keep on stirring them on regular intervals.

You can grate the carrots manually or in a food processor. obviously, the food processor makes grating the carrots easier.

I suggest using a heavy iron kadai to make the halwa. The carrot halwa is simmered and simmered and stirred often. So that it should not get burnt, a really good kadai makes the job easier. You can also use a non-stick kadai or a thick bottomed pan.

How to make carrot halwa

2. Then grate the carrots either with a hand-held grater or in a food processor. You will need about 4 to 4.5 cups grated carrots.

3. In a heavy kadai, add all of the grated carrots.

4. Pour 4 cups full-fat milk. Switch on the burner.

5. Mix the grated carrots and milk together.

6. Cook this mixture on a low to medium flame. After some minutes, the milk will begin to froth first and then start reducing slowly and slowly.

7. Keep on stirring this halwa mixture often. Keep scraping the sides of the kadai to remove the evaporated milk solids. Add the milk solids to the cooking mixture. simmer carrots in milk and stir also at intervals, so that the milk does not stick to the bottom of the pan.

8. Cook the carrot+milk mixture till milk is reduced by 75%.

Making carrot halwa

9. Then add 4 tablespoons ghee (clarified butter). Do note that some milk will be there when you add the ghee.

16. When the halwa has reduced much and you see a little milk – like that of a pudding consistency. Then add nuts and dry fruits. You can add your choice of nuts and dry fruits. I have added 12 cashews, 12 almonds and 2 tablespoons golden raisins. Chop the nuts before you add. Raisins can be kept whole. If using saffron, then you can add at this step.

17. Mix again and continue to stir and simmer.

18. Simmer till the whole halwa mixture becomes dry. The milk should evaporate completely and you will see fine milk solids in the carrot halwa.you will also see some ghee being released from the sides. remember to scrape the milk solids stuck at the sides of the kadai or pan and add them to the gajar halwa. Some moisture is also fine in the halwa.

Serve gajar ka halwa hot or warm. Refrigerate the leftovers and while serving you can warm the halwa. Garnish with some chopped dry fruits while serving.

Storing & serving carrot halwa

1. You can store the halwa in the fridge. it stays well for almost a week but will get over quickly. when serving, you can just warm the halwa and then serve.

2. In the cold winters of north India, Carrot halwa is served hot or warm.

3. you can even have the gajar halwa chilled if you prefer. Some people like to have it cold or at room temperature and some people like to have carrot halwa hot or warm. It is just a personal preference. In some restaurants, they serve a combination of carrot halwa with vanilla ice cream and believe me this combo tastes good.

5 to 6green cardamom- powdered finely in a mortar-pestle or about ⅓ to 1 teaspoon cardamom powder

10 to 12whole cashews- chopped

10 to 12almonds- sliced or chopped

2tablespoonsgolden raisins

1pinchsaffron strands- optional

Instructions

preparation

First rinse, peel and then grate the carrots (8-9 medium sized tender juicy carrots), either with a hand held grater or in a food processor.

You need approx 4 to 4.5 cups grated carrots.

making carrot halwa

In a kadai or deep thick bottomed pan combine milk and grated carrots.

On a low to medium flame, bring the whole mixture to a boil and then simmer.

While the mixture is simmering on a low flame, keep on stirring in between.

The grated carrots will cook in the milk and the milk will start to reduce and evaporate.

When the milk has 75% reduced, add the ghee, sugar and powdered cardamom to the mixture.

Stir well and continue to simmer and cook on a low flame.

Do keep on stirring the halwa in between.

Towards the end, add the cashews, almonds, saffron and raisins. Simmer the halwa till all the milk is evaporated. Switch off the burner.

Serve gajar halwa hot, warm or you can also serve it cold. garnish with some chopped dry fruits while serving.

Notes

Use fresh, juicy and tender carrots.

The recipe can be halved or doubled.

The halwa stays good in the fridge for almost about a week.

Use full-fat milk or whole milk.

Add nuts and dry fruits of your choice.

Nutrition Info (approximate values)

Nutrition Facts

Carrot Halwa

Amount Per Serving

Calories 324Calories from Fat 144

% Daily Value*

Fat 16g25%

Saturated Fat 8g50%

Monounsaturated Fat 2g

Cholesterol 38mg13%

Sodium 130mg6%

Potassium 550mg16%

Carbohydrates 40g13%

Fiber 2g8%

Sugar 34g38%

Protein 7g14%

Vitamin A 14785IU296%

Vitamin C 5.2mg6%

Calcium 217mg22%

Iron 0.8mg4%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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namaste and welcome to vegrecipesofindia.com which i started in feb 2009 and is a pure vegetarian blog. i have been passionate about cooking from childhood and began to cook from the age of 10. later having enrolled in a home science degree greatly enhanced my cooking & baking skills and took it to a different level which i now share as foolproof recipes. i was formally trained both in mainstream indian as well as international cuisines.

Hello! I was trying out this recipe now and something weird happened, the milk curdled as soons as i added it to the carrots..it was a fresh packet. I tried it once again eitj another milk packet, even boiled the milk, it eas fine by then, again as soon as i added it to the carrots..it curdled. Is it normal? Or there is some issue with it?!

dassana amit

Dec 18, 2016

indrani, milk does not curdle. could be the quality of milk is not good. milk thickens along with the carrots and becomes like mawa or khoya. don’t use the curdled milk one. you can rinse the carrots in the colander and then use fresh milk. if milk is not there, then refrigerate or freeze the carrots. no need to throw such large amounts. make next day.

tanvi

Dec 16, 2016

thank you so much for the recipe, the measurements are perfect and so useful for beginners like me..i made it exactly as you described and it is super-yummy 🙂

dassana amit

Dec 16, 2016

welcome tanvi. thanks for sharing this lovely feedback and i am glad that you liked the gajar halwa.

Pooja

Dec 13, 2016

That’s a really nice recipe and can’t wait to try it out. But I don’t have ghee and I can’t find it anywhere around where I live (Sydney) , so can I use butter instead? How much should I use?

dassana amit

Dec 13, 2016

thanks pooja. use unsalted butter. same amount as ghee which is 4 tablespoons.

Sowmya

Dec 07, 2016

Turned out very well in fact. Vouched by my mother and husband 😀 🙂 It was my first time trying out this dish!! Thanks for the recipe. It is very simple and easy to make.

dassana amit

Dec 08, 2016

thanks sowmya for the positive review. glad to know that your mom and husband liked the gajar halwa.

Malvika

Dec 05, 2016

I made gajar halwa yesterday following your wonderful step by step instructions and the result was amazing! It was my second attempt(made it almost a decade ago) but this was far superior and finger licking good! I served it with a dollop of French Vanilla icecream and my kids couldn’t get enough! Thank you so much and keep posting amazing recipes.

Can I make without raisins and saffron? Also do we need to boil the milk before cooking?

dassana amit

May 14, 2016

you can make gajar halwa without raisins and saffron. if the milk is pasteurized then no need to boil. but if the milk is raw, then it needs to be boiled.

Anjana

Apr 10, 2016

Great article. Very well explained. Thanks!

dassana amit

Apr 10, 2016

welcome anjana

Don Turnblade

Apr 10, 2016

Looking for a variety using honey rather than sugar that I had while on a business trip in India. It is a great side dish and flavor when hosting a Vegetarian far from home as well as just wholesome goodness.

dassana amit

Apr 10, 2016

i have never heard about gajar halwa being made with honey. but yes honey can be substituted for sugar. cook the halwa till its done. its should be thick with all the milk evaporated. switch off the flame. let the halwa become warm. then add honey as per your taste. mix and serve. honey should never be heated as it become toxic.

Angela

Feb 21, 2016

This was amazing! Takes an hour to make but completely worth it. The instructions you gave were easy enough to comprehend, even a 13 year old like me can make it. Thank you.

dassana amit

Feb 21, 2016

pleased to know this angela and wish you good luck in cooking. thankyou for your positive words god bless you.

Vijesh

Feb 13, 2016

Thanks so much. My first attempt in this and this has turned out great. I could not stop myself from thanking you and appreciating you. And the best part is the simplicity of this recipe and the way you have explained. You are a sweetheart.

dassana amit

Feb 14, 2016

very pleased to know this vijesh 🙂 thankyou so much for your kind and honest words. touched by your words.

Ryan

Feb 12, 2016

After a lengthy trip to Bangalore in 2015 I came home with a huge appreciation for the taste of India. Found this recipe and have made it 5 times now and it is always a big hit with whomever is at dinner. Thank you and please keep up the good work here.

dassana amit

Feb 13, 2016

glad you liked the gajar halwa and hope you had a great trip to bangalore 🙂 you are welcome and thankyou so much for your positive words.

Shachi

Feb 12, 2016

Hi.. Thank you so much for making me a good cook.. I make carrot halwa by traditional method of slow cooking carrot n milk.. Can i add khoya to this halwa to make it more rich in taste n set it as a barfi? Also what will be the differece in taste? In which carrot halwa recipe of yours can i add khoya? I wanted to make carrot barfi using khoya.. Please guide.. Thanks

dassana amit

Feb 12, 2016

thanks shachi. i have not yet posted recipe of gajar halwa with khoya. but you can add khoya in this recipe. just cook the halwa till it becomes thick and starts to leaves the sides of the pan. then you can set it as a barfi. for reference, you can check this post of gajar barfi – https://www.vegrecipesofindia.com/carrot-burfi-recipe-gajar-barfi/

anuja

Feb 10, 2016

How many people can have this 8 to 9 carrots halva

dassana amit

Feb 10, 2016

atleast 7-8 also depends how much each person wishes to eat 🙂 anuja.

Taniya

Feb 05, 2016

Cooked for the first time….n heard lots of apprappreciation…all thanks to u

dassana amit

Feb 05, 2016

pleased to know this taniya thankyou for trying them and for your kind words.

Binay

Jan 24, 2016

I love gajar is halwa first time preparing myself

dassana amit

Jan 24, 2016

pleased to know this binay thankyou for trying them 🙂

sumit singh

Jan 23, 2016

I love gajar halwa !Going to cook tonight 🙂

dassana amit

Jan 24, 2016

surely cook sumit and let us know how it was?

Nafla

Jan 09, 2016

thank u sooo much but can u suggest some othr simple dishes like this? i am a south indian ,i love dishes like this. i luv cooking and also vacation is cmng so i cud try a few can u suggest a few pls?

dassana amit

Jan 09, 2016

thanks nafla. i have posted many recipes on the website that are easy to prepare. you can have a look at this section of: snacks – https://www.vegrecipesofindia.com/recipes/indian-snacks-indian-starters/ and also this section on 30 minute recipes – https://www.vegrecipesofindia.com/recipe/30-minutes-recipes/

Anoshka

Jan 08, 2016

Dear tel me how much milk is required fr 6 kg carrots

dassana amit

Jan 08, 2016

you can use from 7 to 8 litres of milk.

Shazia

Jan 10, 2016

How much milk required for 1kg carrot

dassana amit

Jan 10, 2016

you can use use 1 to 1.5 litres.

kalyan pradhan

Jan 07, 2016

I liked it, it is one of the most easiest process or method………..very good

dassana amit

Jan 08, 2016

thankyou so much kalyan glad you liked the gajar halwa recipe.

Pallavi

Jan 06, 2016

Hi di, I am really thankful to you.. I was in boarding school since my childhood so dint even know a bit of cooking, but you made me a pro cook..I am married now and I made a good impression in my laws house just because of you.. Thanx a lot

dassana amit

Jan 06, 2016

glad pallavi our food blog could help you all the best and you are welcome always 🙂

Being away from from home as a grad student in the US is tough. Especially if you are a foodie and I am one. I had some time during my winter break and decided to make some sweets but I didn’t know any recipe. So I looked up your site and made rasulla, wheat cookies and gajar halwa. They all turned out great and reminded me of home food! I can’t thank you enough dasana akka. Dhanyavadagalu!

dassana amit

Dec 22, 2015

thats so sweet of you manju. thanks a lot. touched by your comment. wish you all the best in your future and also wish you a happy new year.

Neha

Dec 21, 2015

Hi mam..How much sugar hv u put while making halwa ?10 or 12 tbsp

dassana amit

Dec 21, 2015

neha, i have added 10 tbsp. but depending on the sweetness of the carrots and sweetness preferred by you and your family members, you can add accordingly.

jhini banerjee

Dec 16, 2015

you have made cooking a pleasure , thank you.

dassana amit

Dec 17, 2015

thank you much jhini.

Revathy natarajasivan

Dec 13, 2015

Hello mam, I m a great fan of ur blog. I have tried so many recipes from yours tawa paneer, bis bele bath, kadai veg, mushroom Manchurian.. Etc urs recipes means it will definitely come well..for diwali I made besan laddoo nd it came out too gud..thank u for al

dassana amit

Dec 13, 2015

quite pleased to know this revathy 🙂 and thankyou so much for your honest words 🙂 and you are always welcome.

Namaste. I am the chef and author of Veg Recipes of India. I shared, tried & tested Indian as well as world vegetarian recipes in a detailed step by step photos, which will help you to make delicious, tasty and tasty vegetarian food easily. READ MORE